The present invention relates to an incense match and, more particularly, to a method of making such an incense match.
Incense has been popular in Asian cultures for many centuries, and has been present in the United States for a long time as well. While the 1960s saw the use of incense skyrocket by counter-culture elements, incense has now moved into the mainstream. Incense provides not only a pleasant aroma in which to function, but also may serve as an insecticide or insect repellant. The particular combination of elements within the fumigant allows different aromas and/or different properties to be incorporated into different incense. Additionally, incense coupled with acupuncture is believed, by many, to promote healing. Additionally, a whole new field of holistic medicine, entitled Aroma Therapy, has also come to relatively recent attention by the efforts of its practitioners. Thus, it is easily seen that incense has a myriad of uses, both from a pleasure standpoint and, potentially, from a medicinal standpoint.
With the numerous uses of incense available, numerous efforts to arrive at a convenient technique for dispensing or burning incense have arisen. Incense may come in pellets, tabs, or stick form, such as a joss stick. Additionally, numerous incense-burning apparati have, likewise, been developed and patented. These apparati have given rise to specially-formed incense products which work essentially only with the particular incense-burning product. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,099,916 to Gardner et al. shows a particular incense-supporting apparatus with a vertical rod with a cylindrical incense fitted thereover. The incense must burn of its own accord. While the various and sundry products and incense forms do function well, there remains a need for a more universal incense-delivery technique. One such universal incense-delivery technique was suggested by U.S. Pat. No. 3,754,861 to Sadahiro, which showed a fumigant forming a body and one end of the fumigant covered by a match head. However, the ""861 patent relies on the fumigant to be self-burning. While many fumigants are, in fact, self-burning, greater variety in the aroma provided by the incense is possible if the incense is not required to be self-burning. That is, more flame resistant aroma particles may be inserted into the fumigant if there is no requirement that they burn.
In short, there remains a need for a universal incense distribution product that has properties which do not require the fumigant to sustain a self-burning activity.
The shortcomings of the prior art are addressed by a hollow cylindrical incense product which is especially manufactured to fit over the shaft of a match. In particular, a conventional wooden match is preferred. Thus, the wood of the match provides the energy to char the incense as the wood combusts. This frees the incense for more aromatic elements and diminishes the need for the fumigant itself to be self-burning.
In particular, in one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided an incense device that comprises an elongated extruded incense sleeve having a central opening formed within the sleeve. A wood match having a stem portion and a head is inserted into the incense sleeve. More particularly, the stem portion is inserted into the central opening of the incense sleeve such that the head of the match remains exposed and spaced from one end of the incense sleeve.
Further, the present invention entails a method of manufacturing or forming an incense device. This entails mixing an incense composition and extruding the composition to form an elongated incense product having a central opening extending axially through the incense product. Thereafter the incense product is cut into selected lengths and then subjected to a finishing operation. Next, individual ignition devices, in one embodiment in the form of a match, are inserted into the central opening. In the case of a match, the match stem is inserted a selected distance into the central opening such that the match head that forms a part of the ignition device remains exposed and spaced from one end portion of the incense sleeve.
In another embodiment of the present invention, the incense product includes an ignition head, such as a match head, formed on the end of an incense stick. A first design includes an ignition head that is supported on a relatively short stub shaft and wherein the short stub shaft is inserted into an opening formed on the end of the incense stick. A second design provides for an ignition head, such as a match head, that is molded or fused directly to the end of the incense stick.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent and obvious from a study of the following description and the accompanying drawings which are merely illustrative of such invention.